Boots



June 2, 1970 J. R. coPPoL A BOOTS Filed June 26, 1968 I nz/enor Jsep/z ECoppo/a,

United States Patent() 3,514,877 BOOTS Joseph R. Coppola, Beverly,Mass., assignor to USM Corporation, Flemington, NJ., a corporation ofNew Jersey Filed June 26, 1968, Ser. No. 740,224

Int. Cl. A43b U.S. Cl. 36--2.5 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREA-boot having an outer sole which is molded upon the bottom of the upperand has at its toe portion, heel portion, and inside forepart portionreinforcing projections which extend upwardly from the sole and aremolded@ BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field-ofthe invention This inventionrelates to a boot with an outer sole injection molded thereon, and isdirected more particularly to a boot for use with motorcycles, and likemachines.

Description of the prior art In operation of motorcycles and the like,ordinary shoes and boots have been relied upon to provide the protectionand comfort required by the operator. Such footwear has been ordinary inthe sense that it is generally not designed specifically for utilizationin connection with motor machines. Even footwear advertised for theattraction of motorcycle operators generally pertains to boots of heavyconstruction but which are substantially ordinary boots suitable formost boot-wearing purposes and no more suitable for motorcycle operatorsthan others.

A problem which arises in use of ordinary shoes and boots in motorcycleoperation is the inordinate wear of the toe, heel and inside forepartportions of the shoe. The toe and heel portions of footwear used inmotorcycling are often used extensively in gear shifting and brakingoperations, as well as starting, depending, of course, upon the make andmodel of machine. The inside forepart of the boot is the side inproximity to the machine and suffers from inordinate abrasive wear.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention toprovide a boot for utilization in connection with the operation ofmotorcycles and the like.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a boot in whichthere is provided, in particular areas of the boot, protection towithstand the unusually heavy Wear which is experienced in motorcycleoperation.

With the above and other objects in view, as will hereinafter appear, afeature of the present invention is the provision in an article offootwear of an outer sole which is molded upon the bottom of the upper.The sole is characterized by reinforcing projections which extendupwardly from the sole and are molded around the toe, heel, and insideforepart portions of the upper, whereby to enable those areas towithstand the uncommonly heavy wear to which they are subjected inoperation of motorcycles and other such vehicles.

The above and other features of the invention, includ- ICC ing variousnovel details of construction and combinations of parts, will now bemore particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawingsand pointed out in the claims. It will be understood that the particulararticle embodying the invention is shown by way of illustration only andnot as a limitation of the invention, The principles and features ofthis invention may be employed in various and numerous embodimentswithout departing from the scope of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Reference is made to the accompanyingdrawings in which there is shown an illustrative embodiment of theinvention from which its novel features and advantages will be apparent.

FIG. l is a left side elevational view of one form of a right bootillustrative of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a right side elevational View of the boot shown in FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the boot shown in FIGS. l and 2;and

FIG. 4 is a back elevational view of the boot shown in FIGS. l-3.

DESCRIPTION oF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, itwill be seen that the illustrative article of footwear includes an upper2 and a sole 4 molded to the upper. In the forepart region 6 of thefootwear the molded sole is characterized Aby a reinforcing projection 8(FIG. l) which extends upwardly from the normal upper and sole juncturelocation and is molded around a toe portion 10 (FIG. 3) and an insideforepart portion 12 (FIG. l) of the upper 2. The reinforcing projection8 is secured to the upper by having been molded thereon. On the outsideforepart portion of the footwear article (FIG. 2) the juncture 18 ofupper and sole is in the normal location for such juncture.

In the backpart region 14 of the footwear the molded sole 4 ischaracterized by a reinforcing projection 16 which extends upwardly fromthe sole and is molded around a counter portion of the upper 2.

Thus, the reinforcing p-rojections 8, 16 provide substantial protectionfor the footwear in the toe, heel, and inside forepart areas.

If desired, the projection 16 may be molded with a recess 20 forreceiving a reflector member 22 (FIG. 4), or alternatively, the reectormember 22 may be molded into the projection 16. This feature provides amotorcycle operator with two additional rear reflectors while operatingthe machine at night.

It is to be understood that the present invention is by no means limitedto the particular construction herein disclosed and/or shown in thedrawings, but also comprises any modifications or equivalents within thescope of the disclosure.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An article of footwear comprising an upper, an

outer sole molded on said upper, said sole extending 2. The inventionaccording to claim 1 in which said protective cover is secured to anenvelopes a toe portion of said upper.

3. An article of footwear comprising an upper, an outer sole molded onsaid upper, reinforcing projection means extending upwardly from thesole and molded onto the inside forepart portion of the upper, saidreinforcing projection means being secured to and enveloping saidportion of the upper, a second reinforcing projection means extendingupwardly from the sole and molded onto a counter portion of the upper,said second reinforcing projection means being secured to and envelopingsaid portion of the upper and means for receiving a reector memberprovided on said second v projection means.

4. An article of -footwear comprising an upper, an outer sole molded onsaid upper, reinforcing projection means extending upwardly from theso-le and molded onto the inside forepart portion and toe portion of theupper, said reinforcing projection means being secured to and evelopingthe inside forepart and toe portions of the upper, a second reinforcingprojection means extending upwardly from the sole and molded onto acounter portion of the upper, said second reinforcing projection meansbeing secured to and enveloping said counter por. tion of the upper, andmeans for receiving a reflector member provided on said secondprojection means.

5. A motorcycle boot comprising (A) an upper (B) an outer sole (1)molded on said upper,

4 (C) first reinforcing projection means (l) extending upwardly from thesole and (2) molded onto an inside forepart portion of the upper,

(3) said -rst projection means being secured to and enveloping saidportion of the upper,

(4) said first projection means being further molded onto a toe portionof said upper,

(5) said rst projection means being secured to and enveloping said toeportion,

(a) whereby to form protective cover for said forepart portion and saidtoe portion of said upper,

(D) second reinforcing projection means (l) extending upwardly from thesole and (2) molded onto a counter portion of the upper, (3) said secondprojection means being secured to an enveloping said counter portion,

(a) whereby to form protective cover for said counter portion of saidupper, and

(E) rellector means attached to said second projection means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,403,442 7/ 1946 Klaus 36-2.53,228,122 1/1966 Ludwig 'B6-2.5 3,308,560 3/1967 Jones 36-4 3,345,76110/1967 Stohr 362.5

PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner

